Friends to the End, or the End of Friends?
by Kage Onna
Summary: After a monstrous fight with Iris, Terri leaves town, leaving Iris enraged and embittered. When Iris goes on a manhunt for not only Terri but Sybil too, will they be friends to the end, or will their friendship end...permanently? WARNING - MPYP SPOILERS
1. The Ties That Bind UsBroken?

[Terri: You did it again….

KO: "innocently" Did what?

Terri: You started another story with all your others still unfinished. This makes how many in total?

KO: counts quickly Only 13….

Terri: -- "Only," she says.

KO: Be nice!

Terri: I don't do nice!

KO: Besides, I wanted to get this down before the moment passed and I lost the inspiration. Okay, this story was inspired by this really weird dream I had, so…here it is!

Terri: Forgetting something?

KO: Hmm…not that I know. What could I be forgetting?

Terri: How about a certain man in Japan, a certain anime, and certain ownership rights that don't belong to you?

KO: Oh, yeah, the disclaimer! Okay, me no own Yu-Gi-Oh! That honor belongs to Mr. Kazuki Takahashi, sadly, and not me. I guess I'll have to keep dreaming….

Terri: I'd rather you didn't, if that's where this monstrosity comes from.

KO: gives her The Look On the plus side, I _do_ own Terri, Sybil, Iris, and Ianthe, so no stealing without permission!

Terri: Hence the term "stealing."

KO: glares I want to warn you in advance, Iris will be OOC; she's not normally this impatient or fiery-tempered, so you've been warned! One last thing, this is after MPYP ends, so the yamis have already been separated by the Millennium Dagger. And now, on with the fic!]

**Friends to the End, or the End of Friends?**

**Chapter 1 - The Ties That Bind Us…Broken?**

"Terri, what is _with_ you lately?!" Iris snapped in frustration.

_"Me?!"_ the other yelled in rage and surprise. _"ME?!"_

"_Hai_, you! I don't see anyone else around with hair in three different colors!"

"What about me?"

"Keep out of this, Sybil!"

"Leave her alone!" Terri shouted.

"Why should I? Besides, Sybil, your soul's bonded to hers; technically you're a part of her, so you don't count anyway," she said coldly.

"If you say so."

Holding her back a few feet, Ianthe hissed, "Aren't you going to do anything about this before it comes to blows?"

"_Iie_. This has been brewing for weeks."

"Weeks? I thought they were friends!"

Solemnly, she said, "They were."

"Were?! Sybil, you can't be serious!"

"Ah, perhaps I spoke in haste," she considered, closing her eyes. "At the moment, hard as it may be to believe, they _are_ still friends. However, unless they vent this out now, they will almost certainly no longer be."

"Sybil, this worries me. Unless you stop them, it may _yet_ come to blows."

"I doubt it. Terri may be short-tempered, but I don't think she would ever hit Iris."

"She hit her before you returned from the Shadow Realm."

The once-queen's eyes widened. "She did?"

"She never told you?"

"Iie, never!"

"Iris had caught her cutting her wrists on several occasions--"

"Hai, I know about that part."

"Apparently she was angry out of concern, so she told Terri that after a year, if you hadn't returned, you likely wouldn't, and that since she threw the Tiara off the pier, she didn't want you to and to get over it. After that, Terri punched her in the stomach and stormed out."

"I-I never knew," she stammered, losing the dignified air she always held about her. "_Gomen nasai_, Ianthe."

"I don't blame you, but the two of them have been losing their patience with each other more and more often lately."

"ARGH! That's _it!_ I've _had_ it!" Terri screamed, drawing the attention of everyone in Domino City Park.

_"You've_ had it?! You really think I want to deal with a psycho like you any longer?! Maybe I should leave town before you put _me _in the hospital, too!" Iris shrieked in response.

"Better not; I don't want to run into you on the road! I've got more experience at leaving towns, and besides, we wouldn't want to ruin that charmed life of yours, would we?" she sneered, rolling her eyes and stalking off toward the Kame Game shop. "_Sayônara!_"

Sybil's eyes widened again as she ran to catch up with her other. "Terri, what are you doing?!" she cried in alarm.

"Sybil, much as I hate to agree with Iris right now, stay out of this; it's not your place to interfere in my affairs."

Circling around and placing both hands on her light's shoulders, she said with a bit of desperation, "_Aibou,_ think about what you're doing!"

"I _am_ thinking, Sybil; if I don't go, I might seriously hurt her. I may be mad, but I do still respect her enough that I don't want to go ballistic on her. You, of all people, should remember the last time that happened!"

"Indeed I do."

Flashback

"What makes you think you've frightened me?"

"I'm not stupid; I can tell fear. I've seen it enough in my own eyes. Time to say bye-bye, Sybil."

Real world

"Then you know how easily I could snap. I haven't been completely stable since that, and Millennia screwin' around with my soul room didn't help, not to mention Meg herself showin' up! Kaiba may have called Jou a whimpering _inu_ in the past, but I'm the one who's running scared."

"Terri, you're just angry."

"That's just it! I'm _not_ just mad, I'm scared of what might happen if I stay around! I really am, Sybil, I'm _scared._ I have to go. _Onegai,_ you've got to understand. I might be back, and I might not, but don't come after me, onegai." Wrenching away from her dark's grip, she ran to the Game shop, quickly packed her belongings into her old duffel bag, and ran out of town without a word, ignoring Yugi and Yami's questions.

[KO: Wow, this turned out darker than I thought….

Terri: I hate you.

KO: ;; I'M HATED!

Sybil: Do you blame her?

KO: glares Yes….

Terri/Sybil: --

KO: Anyway, at the advice of one of my fellow authoresses, to preserve the suspense, I'm not doing chapter previews in this story.

Translations from Japanese:

Hai - Yes

Iie - No

Gomen nasai - I'm sorry (more sincere than simply "gomen")

Sayônara - Goodbye

Aibou - (I've heard it means "partner," but I can't seem to find a translation to see for myself, so I'm going with that)

Inu - Dog

Onegai - Please

KO: Okay, how 'bout…5 reviews for the next chapter? That's not too much, is it? Nah! Ja ne!]


	2. Something Missing

[KO: Hiya! KO here with--

Terri: {sarcastically} Really? Could it possibly be you, KO? This _is_ posted on your bio….

KO: -.-' Like I said, KO here with chapter 2 of Friends to the End, or the End of Friends? From now on, the story will be known as FEEF!

Terri: Have I mentioned I hate you?

KO: Repeatedly. Anyway, I think I'm gonna have to change my translation indicators, since FF.net has decided to screw everything up with their QuickEdit....From now on, translations will be bold. Now, on with the fic!]

****

**Chapter 2 - Something Missing**

****

At the Kame Game shop 

"Sybil, where did Terri go?" Yami asked as his sister walked in, looking hurt and a bit dazed.

"I don't know," she murmured, barely audible. "All I know is that she left Domino City."

"What happened back there?" Yugi put in. "She looked like she was ready to either start crying or punch somebody."

"Most likely a combination of the two. Oh, Ra, I should've stopped them!" she moaned, sinking into a chair with her head in her hands.

"Stopped who?"

"Terri and Iris! I should have done _something_ to stop them, but I had to let them vent! Why did I have to be such a _baka_?!"

"It's not your fault, Sybil," Iris said, walking back in, fists clenched. "You know how stubborn she is."

"Part of it _does _come from me, Iris," Sybil said, standing. She kept a cool tone, her narrowed, crimson eyes the only outward sign of her anger.

"Not enough to make her act like _that._ Yami, Yugi," she greeted stiffly, nodding to them before quickly walking upstairs.

Whatever _did_ happen must've been bad. I've _never_ seen Sybil that mad at Iris, Yugi said worriedly.

**I don't believe I've ever seen her angry at _Iris_ at all,** Yami replied. **She's--_was,_ rather--almost as close to Iris as Terri herself.**

I know. Like I said, it must have been really bad to make Terri leave town.

Elsewhere.... 

"**Sumimasen**, what time is the next train out of town?"

"_Ano,_ that depends; where did you plan on going?"

"It doesn't matter, really; just far and fast. How much would it cost to get me to...ano, what about...Nagano?"

"Nagano? Aren't you a bit young to be going that far?"

"I'm actually 17; I'm just shorter than most people my size," Terri said with a touch of almost undetectable indignation, pulling out her driver's license as proof. "So, how much is the ticket?"

"It comes to...**27, 938.29 yen**. Are you sure you really want to go that far?"

"Hai, I'm sure. The farther, the better when you're leaving everything behind."

"Leaving everything behind? What happened? Oh, and the next train to Nagano doesn't leave for a few hours."

"Great," she sighed dejectedly. "Just fantastic." She checked her watch. 5:27 PM. "When you say 'a few hours,' how long are we talkin' about here?"

"It leaves at eight sharp, miss. So, what happened to make you want to go to Nagano?"

"It's complicated....I had a...difference of opinions with an...acquaintance...of mine," she said uneasily.

"'Difference of opinions?' Y'know, that's normally slang for--"

"Iie--iie, I didn't kill anyone! I just meant I got into an enormous argument with someone who was once my friend," she said, looking out over Domino City's harbor. "Everything had been building up over the months, and we just let it out all at once. I hate to leave my other friends, but if I stay I'm worried I might seriously hurt someone. Do you know where I can find something to pass the time? I don't have any plans for the next few hours...."

"Well, there's a store across the street; they sell a bunch of games and books."

"Oh, **dômo**; that'll be good," she replied, jogging across the street and quickly buying a few magazines, a copy of _Fahrenheit 451,_ and a book of crossword puzzles before returning to the train station. _**Un**_,_ that'll work,_ she thought._ This can keep my mind off everything. Now, will it last through the wait _and_ the ride?_ she mused, frowning. _Oh, well, it'd better; I really don't feel like buying any more...._ She gave a halfhearted laugh at her own lethargy.

Back in Domino City, the next day

"**Oi**_,_ Sybil, you look depressed," Jou noted when said yami met the group at Burger World on their lunch break. (A/N: I'm guessing the high school lets them off-campus for lunch.) She didn't reply. "Oi! Sybil? You in there?" he asked, waving a hand in front of her face until she sent him a withering stare.

"I'm fine, Jonouchi," she said slowly and deliberately, her eyes slowly returning to their normal indigo.

"Ah, **gomen**!" he said hurriedly, drawing back as if she were on fire.

"Iie, I should be apologizing; I overreacted," she quickly corrected, shaking her head.

"**Sore de kamaimasen**_,_" he shrugged. "But seriously, what's up? You're acting like someone died or something."

"Is it something wrong with Terri? She wasn't at school today," Anzu said, concern in her voice.

"She won't be anymore." Sybil glared pointedly at Iris, her eyes rapidly reverting to an eerie scarlet red. Iris coolly gazed back, then, with infuriating calm, stood, and sauntered out of the restaurant.

"Sybil? Sybil?! Sybil, calm down!" Anzu said urgently, putting her hands over the former queen's own quivering fists.

"Gomen nasai; I should never have let her get to me," she replied, blinking slowly to clear the haze from her eyes, which were gradually recovering their sapphire hue. She sighed shakily and leaned forward, resting her forehead in her hands.

"Sybil, what happened? Why won't Terri be going to school anymore?"

"Because she no longer lives here."

"**Nani**?!" she, Jou, and Honda repeated in shock.

"Terri has left Domino City," she reiterated sadly.

"**Dôshite**?" Jou asked.

"She and Iris...they got into an argument yesterday, and Terri left for fear of seriously injuring Iris, who seems to show absolutely no remorse for what happened." For the third time in as many minutes, her eyes began to redden.

"Sybil, calm down," Yami said warningly. She growled in frustration and shook her head again, trying to maintain her composure.

"Why didn't you go after her?" Honda asked.

"She asked me not to, and I respect her enough to honor that request."

"Any idea where she went?" Jou questioned.

"Iie," she responded softly, lowering her eyes. "All she said was that she had to leave, that she may or may not be back, and not to follow her."

"Well, she never said anything about me, did she? I'm not afraid to go after her!" he replied with conviction.

"Neither am I; as I said, it's out of respect that I didn't go after her, not fear. Besides, even if you _do_ find her, you may be doing more harm than good by doing so."

"Well, only one way to find out," he said determinedly. "Wish me luck, everyone, 'cause I'm leaving tomorrow!"

"Are you sure, Jou?" Yugi asked. "Who knows how long it could take to find her?"

"Well, like I said, only one way to find out!" he shrugged, undeterred.

"What would you do financially?" Sybil asked.

"I've still got the leftover prize money from Duelist Kingdom."

"Transportation?" she pressed.

"I can rent a car or take a bus."

"May I speak with you in private?" she sighed. Without waiting for an answer, she dragged him out of earshot. "Do you truly insist on proceeding with this, Jonouchi?" she asked gravely, looking him straight in the eye with an expression that seemed to bore through his soul. "You realize how much danger this could put you in, don't you? Even _after_ you find her, _if_ you find her, you could still be in jeopardy. When she left, she was angry enough to kill; she could take it out on the nearest person. Even--"

"To kill? I've seen her mad before, but mad enough to _kill?"_

"Trust me, Jonouchi, I saw it in her eyes. I've only seen that kind of fury twice in her, and one of those times, it had the desired result. The other time was dangerously close as well."

"What times?"

"The first was in her soul room the day she dueled Kaiba, when he almost strangled her." She unconsciously brought a hand to her own throat. Quickly realizing what she was doing, she snapped it down, bringing it to a fist at her side. "The second...the second was when Millennia's _vessel_ attacked you." She practically spat the word, unwilling to call Meg Grayson either by name or a hikari of any kind. "Both times, she had a mad look in her eyes. I'm sure you remember the second time, and my own emotions mirrored hers the first."

He swallowed hard. "Un, I remember now."

"If you want to reconsider, I won't hold it against you--"

"Iie! I said I was going after her, so I will!" he cut in fiercely.

"Are you sure, beyond a shadow of a doubt?"

"Un, I told you already! Do you want to come or not? If you do, I'd suggest getting packed tonight. I'll be leaving early."

"Iie, I can't follow her."

**"Dôshite iya na no?"**

"Believe me, I would if I could, but she asked me not to, and I made a vow to her, if not aloud. My word is my word, and I stand by it. I may regret my decision now, but I value her trust, so I refuse to go back on my promise, no matter what." To Jou's shock, she hurriedly brushed away a tear! "Now, I'll ask you one last time: are you absolutely positive you want to go through with this?"

"Hai."

"Then I wish you the best of luck on your journey. Terri's lucky to have a friend who cares as much about her as you do."

"Well, so does everyone else," he said, blushing a bit.

"As do I, but you're willing to travel the entire country to reassure yourself of her well-being. Come to the Game shop before you leave; I have some advice to give you then."

"All right."

[KO: There, chapter 2 done!

Terri: Yay.

KO: Well, since I can't think of anything for my usual comedy routine, I'll just cut straight to the chase....

Translations from Japanese

Baka - Idiot

Sumimasen - Excuse me

Ano - Uh; um

Dômo - Thanks

Un - Yeah

Oi - Hey

Gomen - Sorry (less formal)

Sore de kamaimasen - Don't worry about it

Nani - What

Dôshite - Why

Dôshite iya na no - Why not

$250 in US dollars; $342.52 in Canadian dollars; ₤137.84 in UK pounds]


	3. Advice

[KO:  Konnichiwa, minna-san!  Kage Onna here with chapter three of FEEF! 

Terri:  That's nice, now can we get this over with?

KO:  {gives her The Look}  Okay, then, we'll just go straight to review responses....

crazed fanatic anime fan - Well, thankies for the praise!  .  And Jou already said he was going after her, sooo...yeah.  Besides, not only would it be sad if she never came back, we'd have no story!

KO:  One more thing, a shout-out goes to my mom for all her help with this chapter.  {cyber-glomp}  Now, on with the fic!]

Chapter 3 - Advice 

                An abrupt stop jolted Terri awake in Nagano, and she blinked sleepily to clear her eyes as the other passengers began filing out around her.  She quickly gathered her things and fell into line, scowling as rain began to fall dismally.  "Just wonderful," she sighed.  "Could things get worse?"

Kame Game shop, early that morning 

                Jonouchi softly tapped on the door to the Game shop, hoping not to wake anyone but Sybil.  Luckily, she had slept in the front room and was a fairly light sleeper, so she woke quickly and came to the door, rubbing her eyes with one hand.  "Jonouchi?" she said groggily.  "I hadn't expected you for over an hour, at least," she added, checking her watch, which read 4:27 AM.

                "Well, I said I was leaving early."

                "So you did," she admitted with a small laugh.  "Would you like to come in for a few minutes, or will you be leaving immediately?"

                "Well, I want to get going ASAP, but I guess I can spare a few minutes; dōmo," he replied as Sybil let him in, afterwards putting on a pot of coffee.

                "Mm, **dō itashimashite**," she murmured with a slight nod, still quite drowsy.

                "Did I come too early?" he asked a bit guiltily.

                "Hm?  Oh, iie, I had been having trouble sleeping anyway.  Besides, I normally wake up at dawn, so this is no far stretch for me, really."

                "Dawn?  Every day?!"

                "Jonouchi, lower your voice!" she hissed with a grin.  "The two of us are the only ones awake at this hour!"

                "Oops!  Gomen!"

                "Sore de kamaimasen; nothing came of it."

                "But still, dawn every day?!" he repeated, this time remembering to keep his voice hushed.

                "Mine and Yami's tutors woke us daily at sunrise for lessons until sunset."

                "I couldn't do it; I'd have hit someone."

                "Believe me, it was tempting.  However, even the royal children were hardly allowed to strike their tutors," she pointed out, pouring herself a cup of coffee and sitting back down.

                "What a shame," he grinned.  "So, what advice was it you wanted to give me before I left?"

                "First, travel lightly."  He gestured with his single bag.  "Second, never carry any large amount of money with you, or if you must, make yourself inconspicuous.  My third piece of advice is actually a gift and a lesson, the latter of which must be done outside.  My gift to you is this," she said, producing a perfectly round, black crystal about the size of her palm from her pocket.

                "What's this, a glass 8-ball?"

                "Iie, it's a crystal, forged from pure Shadow magic."

                "Shadow magic?  Whose?"

                "Mine; how else could it be _my_ gift to you?"

                "So this thing's your pure energy?"

                "Hai, but the purpose of any **Kage no Suishō** is to amplify the Shadow magic of the holder, so I give it to you to aid you.  However, you must be cautious with this crystal; if used improperly, even by its intended owner, it can be dangerous.  Another thing, onegai, take care not to let it get damaged; a Kage no Suishō is difficult to create.  It was actually part of the reason I was so tired earlier, although I suppose it _did_ help me sleep," she said wryly.

                "Are you okay?  It sounds like making this thing left you drained," he started, trying to return the crystal.  "Maybe you should keep it."

                "Sore de kamaimasen," she said again.  "I had the energy to spare, and you may need it more than I.  My energy will replenish itself in due time; until then, I can get some rest.  I _needed_ to get rid of the energy, so it will do me good in the long run.  Keep it, Jonouchi.  Besides, I still need to teach you one thing."

                "What's that?"

                "Guess.  Why else would I give you a crystal created from nothing but my Shadow magic for the purpose of magnifying your own?  Do you have your deck?" she said with a smile.

                "You mean you're gonna teach me to summon monsters?  Like you did when Kaiba went after Terri?!  Are you serious?!"

                "Hai, I am.  This is why it has to be done outside.  Come with me," she directed, putting her coffee cup in the sink and walking out.  The pair walked into an alley that Sybil said would be dark enough for her purposes.  "Now, choose a card from your deck, preferably a low-level monster; they make the easiest summonings."

                "Hmm, how about this one?" he suggested, pulling out Baby Dragon.

                "Good, you should be able to summon that one easily.  The first thing you need to know is that each summoning will consume some of your energy, so naturally, high-level summonings will be more trying on you, as will several in rapid succession.  The ease or difficulty of performing summonings differs from person to person based on stamina, so you should have little trouble.  Now, in order to actually _perform_ the summoning, you need to focus on willing the card into existence; you don't necessarily have to call the creature's name, nor do you have to even _have_ the card if you know what monster you want to summon or what spell to perform."

                "You mean you can use Magic cards, too?"

                "And traps, but it would be best to start with normal monsters.  Effect monsters are a bit harder to summon, then Magic cards, and Traps are the most difficult.  Now, try to call forth your dragon."

                "All right, but it probably won't work."  He held the card up, and had just opened his mouth to speak when Sybil cut him off abruptly, eyes narrowed.

                "Your own hesitation and negativity will hinder you, Jonouchi.  You need to think positively and have confidence in yourself, or it _won't_ work," she said sternly.  He shrank back almost indiscernibly and sweatdropped nervously.

                "Okay, I got it, I got it!"

                "Good.  I think maybe you should wait until tomorrow to leave; this could take the entire day to learn."

                "And how long did it take you to learn?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

                "A year or two, but I had absolutely no prior knowledge, whereas you know everything you need to.  I also had no interest, yet you have the dedication to learn it quickly, possibly within a single day.  Now, try and summon your dragon."

                "All right, let's try this...."  He trailed off, focusing his energy into the card and calling, "Baby Dragon!"  For a moment, nothing happened, and he sweatdropped, until the card's picture began to glow, Sybil's Kage no Suishō began to swirl dark blues and purples in addition to its normal black, and in a bright flash, the aforementioned dragon stood before them, heralding its arrival with its trademark squeaky growl.

                Eyes widening, Sybil said, with no small degree of surprise, "You did it!  In all honesty, I never expected you to master it on your first attempt!"  Regaining her control, she said, "Let's move on, shall we?  Try an effect monster."

Nagano 

                "Now, where do I need to go first?" Terri pondered to herself, walking aimlessly down the sidewalk.  "Probably to find an apartment, then a job; I'll need to be able to support myself, and I'm not gonna stoop to being homeless, either."  She turned to a passerby on the street.  "Sumimasen, do you know where I can find an apartment at a decent price?"

                "Ano, I think there's a building down the street that's pretty cheap, right down there at the corner," he said, pointing.

                "**Dōmo arigatō**!" she sighed in relief, jogging down to the corner he indicated.  "He _had_ to have been kidding," she muttered, sweatdropping at the sight of the dilapidated complex.  "Terri, my girl, you _can_ afford better than _this."_  To another local--she hoped--she asked, "Do you have any idea where I can find an apartment and a job?  I just got to town, and I don't quite know my way around yet."

                "Well, I hear Sony's hiring secretaries downtown."

                "Actually, I'm not out of high school yet, but I don't have any family, so I need to find somewhere that'll hire a student...."

                "Oh.  In that case, I don't think I can help you, but there's a nice apartment complex a few blocks down that way," he said, pointing to his right.

                "'Nice' being better than that one?" she asked hopefully, pointing to the previous hovel.

                "Much," he replied with a slight grimace.  "You'll know the place when you see it.  Good luck."

                "Dōmo!" she called, running off again.

[KO:  There, chappy 3 done!

Terri:  Do you always call them chappies?

KO:  Yeah, it's easier than saying "chapter."

Terri:  -.-  Yeah, whatever.

KO:  Oh, don't give me that look!  Now, I've been wanting to do this, so....{deep announcer voice}  Will things get worse for Terri?  Will Jou master summoning?  Will Terri find an apartment?  Where will she work?  Find the answers to these questions and more when Friends to the End, or the End of Friends? continues.

Terri:  -.-'

Translations from Japanese:

Dō itashimashite - You're welcome

Kage no Suishō - Shadow Crystal

Dōmo arigatō - Thank you very much

KO:  'Kay, review please!]


	4. Searching

[KO: Hiya! KO here with chappy 4 of FEEF!

Terri: -.- {sarcastically} So, what fun-filled surprises do you have in store for me this time?

KO: Actually, I think this chapter's gonna be more Jou- and Sybil-centric. {looks} You actually only have a little snippet in here....

Terri: {blinks} Hey, I get a break! Mostly....

KO: Don't worry, you'll be back in soon enough.

Terri: Great....

KO: Well, on with review responses!

KO: Now, on with the fic! Oh, and sorry in advance if it turns out short!]

**Chapter 4 - Searching**

"Amazing!" Sybil said as the sun began setting. "I've never seen anyone master summoning in a single day! You've done very well, Jonouchi."

"Well, I had a lot of help," he replied modestly, glancing down at the Kage no Suishô. "Oi, is this thing smaller?"

"Hm? Hai, it is," she responded, taking a closer look at it. "Its size decreases as your Shadow magic is used until it's fully absorbed by your body. That only means that it's adapting to you."

"Oh. Well, why did it act up every time I summoned something?"

"It was reacting to the use of your Shadow magic. Being created from mine, it should also react to Terri's, as well as her emotions; you can use this as a tracking device of sorts. You should feel almost a pull when you're close to a source of Shadow magic."

"A pull? So, I'm guessing you got into a bunch of fights when you were alive the first time?" he grinned.

"Iie, but before I was sealed, I was more easily taken by surprise than I am now; that's because _after _I was sealed, I honed my Shadow magic to react to any other, so I _wouldn't_ be easily caught off guard."

"Oh. So, how _does_ this thing react to Terri?"

"It should change temperature based on Terri's emotions; if she's angry, it will heat up, while if she's sad or afraid, it will become cold. It reacts more acutely the stronger her emotions are, as well as when you're closer to her. When she calms down, it will be warm, but not to the point of being uncomfortable."

"All right then, I've still got some time before it's too dark to travel, so I might as well go now."

"How?"

Grinning, he replied, "Well, what were you just teaching me? My Red-Eyes should be quick enough."

"But it'll also take strength to maintain. Are you sure you can keep it up?"

"Sore de kamaimasen, I can handle it. I think I should probably go to the bus depot or the train station to see if she even went by there...."

"Well, then, I'll say again, be careful."

"Dômo, I will."

"Are you sure you want to go now? It'd be wise to wait until morning; I'm sure Yugi's ojiisan wouldn't object to you staying the night."

"Maybe not, but I'm wasting time staying here talking. The sooner I leave, the sooner I can find Terri."

"Good point. Good luck," she said, clasping his hand in a firm handshake. "One last word of advice before you leave: don't do anything foolish, think through your actions and the consequences before you rush in headlong."

"Right, right," he said coolly, shuffling through his deck and stepping back a few feet. "Come on out, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" The card and the Kage no Suishô began glowing as before, and the dragon emerged with a shrill cry. He hopped onto its back and took off through the evening sky, quickly disappearing over the horizon.

_Jonouchi, come home safe,_ she thought. _Terri would never forgive herself if anything happened to you. Her life could well _depend_ on your safety...._ She let out a resigned sigh and walked back into the Game shop to help close up. "Iris," she began coldly, seeing her former friend, "I suppose you have no regrets for Thursday's events?"

"Why should I have any regrets?" the latter returned with an equally icy tone. "It wasn't my fault; if anyone's to blame, it'd be Ter--iie, it'd be _you!"_

"Me?!" she cried, stunned. "How am _I_ to blame for this?! Explain yourself!" she demanded.

"Of course, _Majesty,"_ Iris scoffed, her sneer quickly melting into a glare. "If _you_ had been able to _suck it up_ and get it through your thick skull that Terri _doesn't_ always think before she _shoots her mouth off,_ you _may_ have realized that she didn't _want_ you to _abandon_ her just before the toughest fight of her _life,_ that, you should know, nearly _killed_ her, and I wouldn't have had to tell her to quit trying to kill herself and _get over it,_ then she wouldn't have punched me! _That's_ what started this, it was your pigheadedness, Sybil. Try thinking about that for awhile," she said, her voice having dropped to dangerously low volumes. She tossed her head in contempt and walked out in a fury.

Sybil stood, rooted to the spot with shock, even as Iris deliberately shoved past her disdainfully, causing her to stagger numbly a bit. Her words had hit home, and they both knew it. _She...she's right, this _was_ all started because of my own obstinacy!_ she realized, astonished. Dumbfounded, she dully sank to her knees, mind whirling. _Forgive me, Terri...._

Nagano

**Forgive me, Terri....** a mournful voice echoed in the girl's head. She blinked.

_Sybil?_

Domino City Train Station

"Oi!" Jou called, knocking on the window of the ticket booth. "Anyone in here?"

"Hai?" the ticket seller asked. "Can I help you?"

"I hope so. Did a girl about this tall--" he indicated her height just below his shoulder "--with spiky blond bangs come through here in the past couple of days? Black hair with red tips, dark blue eyes, short temper?"

"Ano, I think so. Un, on Thursday!"

"Good, that's real good. Did she say where she was going?"

"Dôshite? Do you know her?"

"Un, I'm a friend of hers. Now, where was she going?"

"Well, she said Nagano, but--" He stopped abruptly, as Jou had already run back out the door. "But she could've gone anywhere by now...."

Ducking out of sight, Jou held up a card and called his Red-Eyes again, pausing for a moment to catch his breath from the strain of making two summonings so quickly. Reassuming his mount atop its back, he commanded, "Now, off to Nagano, and step on it!"

[KO: Okay, chappy 4 down! Once again, sorry so short! Hopefully I'm building adequate suspense, so review please!]


	5. Search and Rescue

[KO:  Hiya, minna-san!  KO here with chappy 5 of FEEF!  {taped fanfare}

Sybil:  .............{punches KO in the head anime-style}

KO:  .  Oww, what was that for?!

Sybil:  {walks off}

KO:  {has REBDs circling head}  Wow, pretty dragons....{shakes head}  Hey, what'd I do?!

Terri:  You let her get told off last chapter--which you _don't_ do with Sybil; you should know, you created her--, and you made her mope.

KO:  Now, that last part's not true; she wasn't moping!  She was more...reeling from the shock of what she'd heard!

Terri:  Yeah, whatever. 

KO:  Wah!  I didn't get any reviews, so on with the fic!]

**Chapter 5 - Search and Rescue?**

                _"It was your pigheadedness, Sybil.  Try thinking about that for awhile...."  _Iris's harsh words still rang in Sybil's mind, taunting her.

                "Sybil?" a voice said, snapping her out of her daze.  She blinked and saw Yugi and Yami standing in front of her.  "Are you okay?"

                "Hai, I'm fine, Yugi," she paltered.

                "I'm not sure I believe you; you were just standing there staring off into space."

                "I was trying to contact Terri, but the link was closed," she replied smoothly, once again lying through her teeth.  (A/N:  Hey, she was a teenager once; why wouldn't she be able to lie easily?)

                "If you say so," he replied uncertainly.

                Yami watched him walk off, then said, "All right, Sybil, Yugi may have let you off easily, but I won't.  What's wrong?"

                "**Nani mo**!  Must I repeat myself?!" she cried in vexation, which only increased when she tried to walk out, only to have her brother quickly position himself between her and the door, crossing his arms.  She narrowed her eyes, which were slowly reddening.  "You're making me lose my patience, Yami."

                "Likewise."

                "We always did have a talent for that," she said with a chuckle.

                "Don't change the subject, Sybil," he retorted quickly, bringing a frown to her lips.  "Now, I asked you a question, and I expect it answered."

                "You _do_ remember that I hate being spoken to as if I'm a subordinate, **nē**?" she shot back, narrowing her eyes further.

                "I'm not speaking to you as a subordinate, but I do want an answer to my question.  What's bothering you so much, Sybil?  Just tell somebody," he urged.  "Does it have something to do with Iris?  She looked absolutely livid when she left."  She flinched, and he knew he was on the right track.  He narrowed his eyes in determination, pressing on.  "Now that you've given that much away, care to fill in the blanks for me?"

                "I'd actually rather not," she responded, looking away.

                "Well, you don't have a choice.  Pardon the comparison, but you're acting like a whipped dog.  _What.  Happened?"_

                "I've just had my own idiocy thrown into my face, if you must know!" she shouted angrily, flinging her gaze to the floor.  "How would you like it if you found out you had caused this degree of misery to Yugi, or a feud of this magnitude between him and Jonouchi?" she finished, lowering her voice, but withholding none of her previous venom from it.

                "So that's what this is about?  The battle against Millennia?" he asked, quickly putting two and two together.  Noting her silence, he pressed on.  "What did she say, Sybil?"

                "Nothing I didn't fully deserve."

                "You're avoiding my question again."

                "Hai, I am," she said calmly, not bothering to lie again.

                "The longer you dodge the issue, the worse it becomes for you, Sybil."

Flashback

                "Of course, _Majesty.  _ If _you_ had been able to _suck it up_ and get it through your thick skull that Terri _doesn't_ always think before she _shoots her mouth off,_ you _may_ have realized that she didn't _want_ you to _abandon_ her just before the toughest fight of her _life,_ that, you should know, nearly _killed_ her, and I wouldn't have had to tell her to quit trying to kill herself and _get over it,_ then she wouldn't have punched me!  _That's_ what started this, it was your pigheadedness, Sybil.  Try thinking about that for awhile."

Real world

                "She said that I abandoned Terri right before the most difficult battle of her life, that I should have been able to, quote, 'suck it up and it through my thick skull,' that she doesn't always think her words through, and that if I had, in essence, ignored her when she told me to leave, she would never have become suicidal and punched Iris for getting angry out of concern.  According to her, it was my own pigheadedness that started this feud."

                "And you honestly believe that?  She's grasping at straws for an outlet for her anger."

                "She seems to honestly blame me for--"

                "Sybil, you can read minds!" he exclaimed in frustration.  "Surely you didn't blindly believe every word she said!"

                "I _did_ read her mind!  She sincerely believes that I'm to blame for this," she shot back, her voice abruptly softening.

                "Again, surely you don't blindly believe every bit of nonsense you hear."

                "What nonsense?" she almost whispered, biting her lip.  "You can't deny it, she was right!" she continued with renewed vigor.

                "She was not!  This came about because of two hot-tempered teenage girls; you aren't to blame for any of it!"

                "Fine," she relented, not sounding convinced at all.  _I wish I could be as confident as you that I'm _not_ to blame for this, though,_ she added silently.

Nagano, a few weeks later

                "**Shimatta**!" Terri exclaimed, stumbling out of her apartment.  "Two weeks on the job and I'm already gonna be late!  How do I end up in these situations?!"  Trying to pull on her shoes and jacket without dropping her cell phone, she looked rather comical, staggering down the street swearing.  Finally managing to pull her shoes on, she tripped and fell headlong into a street thug, mumbled a "Gomen!" and ran on, only to be grabbed by the arm.  Irritated, she whirled to face her aggressor.  "**Miru**, I said I was sorry, now will you let me go?!"

                "That ain't good enough, girly," he sneered.

                "'Girly?!'" she shrieked.  "I'll have you know, I'm seventeen years old!  Now, kindly let me go so I can get to work!"

                "**Damare**!" he growled, twisting her arm behind her back.  To her surprise and chagrin, everyone that saw simply backed away from the group.  "C'mere," he muttered, dragging her into an alley.  "I think I'll have some courtesy and save everyone the sight of what I'm gonna do to you."

                Her eyes widened in shock and disgust.  "I hope you mean fighting me," she hissed, narrowing them again.

                "Won't be no fight, girly; we're gonna knock you clean into next week."

                "You sure about that?  Back in the States I was known for my fights."

                "You ain't never fought no one like the **Akuma Batsu**, girly."

                "Awful early to be drunk, isn't it?" she muttered, noticing the stench of alcohol on his breath and wincing as he yanked her arm up sharply, the height difference making it quite painful.  "**Chikushō**, will you let me go?!  And quit calling me 'girly,' or you'll regret it!"

                "Damare!" he snarled again, motioning to one of his cohorts, who kneed her in the side, causing her to gasp in pain.  The supposed leader smirked in sick satisfaction and shoved her roughly into a brick wall, stunning her for a moment.  The entire group surrounded her, leaving no possible room for escape.  "Now, _girly,_ you're gonna find out the hard way why no one screws around with the Akuma Batsu and lives to tell about it," he grinned, cracking his knuckles.

                Quickly getting to her feet, she thought, _"Lives?"  Okay, this is bad.  One, two, three, four...six of them, one of me.  This is really, _really_ bad.  Why'd I have to pick today to sleep in?!  Why couldn't I have been on time?!  Oh, **Kami**_,_ someone help me...._  Then the brawl began.  At first she tried to dodge and weave her way out, throwing a punch or an elbow here and there, but that soon proved futile, as she took easily twice as many hits as she landed.  _Chikushō!  If I wasn't in a skirt I'd have no problem kicking my way out, but I _had_ to get a formal job...._  She threw a few more punches, but a sudden punch to her stomach combined with an intense pain in her lower thigh, just above the knee, crumpled her.  She noticed a deep, bleeding gash in her leg, and looked up to see the "leader" holding a bloody switchblade.  Almost in spite of herself, she felt herself go pale as her breathing quickened.  _This is it, I'm gonna die at age seventeen!  How was I supposed to start a new life if it's gonna end now?!  Gomen nasai, Sybil, I know you don't wanna be sealed back into that Tiara._  In response to her accelerating pulse, her wound began to bleed copiously, and she vaguely heard an indistinct yell before blacking out.  Her rescuer scooped her up, ripped a sleeve off of his jacket and tied it tightly around her leg before draping the rest of it around her in an attempt to shield her from the January wind, shivering when a gust blew up as if on cue.

                "This just gives me better motivation to find out where she lives," he muttered, running off down the street.

A few hours later

                "Am I dead yet...?" Terri wondered vaguely, her vision beginning to focus.

                "You've been worse," a familiar voice said casually, followed by a yawn.  She blinked in shock.

                "Jou?!"

                "In the flesh," he said, grinning broadly at her.

                "What are you doing here?!"

                Facevaulting, he asked, "That's all I get for saving you, is 'What are you doing here?!'  Jeez, you'd think I'd get--"

                "Sybil sent you, didn't she?!" she cut in, fixing her intense stare on him, which threatened to intensify into an all-out glare.

                "Huh?  Iie, I--"

                "**Tawagoto**!  I _know_ she sent you!  She couldn't just leave me alone, could she?!  Why's she always got to be so worried about me?  I'm not a kid!  She--"

                "Terri!"  This time it was his turn to cut in.  "I didn't need any encouraging; she actually tried to talk me out of it."

                "She--she did?"

                "Un.  She said she respected you, so she wasn't gonna follow you, but I would, so here I am."

                "Okay, fine," she relented.  "What was that yell just before I passed out?"

                "That was Sybil's training put to use."

                "'Training?'" she repeated quizzically, raising an eyebrow.

                "Ano, un.  She figured it'd be dangerous to be traveling alone, so she taught me how to summon monsters and use magic and traps.  She also gave me this," he said, pulling out a strange--to Terri--black orb.

                "And this is...?" she prompted.

                "Sybil called it a Kage no Suishō; said it was formed from her Shadow magic to amplify mine and make summoning easier.  She worries too much, though."

                "Well, I hugely appreciate you saving my life and everything, but I'd better leave now and maybe my boss won't chew me out too bad for being this late."

                "What're you doing?!" he demanded as she attempted to get off the couch, wincing as pressure was applied to her leg.

                "I'm _trying,_ Jou, to go to work, if you don't mind."

                _"You just passed out from blood loss!"_ he yelled, facevaulting again.

                "Iie, I just woke up _after_ passing out from blood loss, actually.  Besides, the guy I work for could care less, as long as I get to work!"

                "I'm not _that_ bad, am I, Allen?" a third voice said, feigning hurt.

                 "Jou, don't _tell_ me Kaiba's in my apartment."

                "...."  He didn't answer.

                "It's not bad enough I gotta lower myself to workin' for you, you gotta come to my apartment too?!" she snapped, turning to face him.  "Didn't I deal with you enough in Domino City?!"

                "Would you rather he ran around without finding where you lived until you both froze to death?"

                Her right eye twitched, but she remained silent.

                "I meant to ask, Kaiba, why are you _in_ Nagano?" Jou asked before things could get ugly.

                "Preparing my Duel Tower tournament," he replied simply.

                "Un, I remember working on that a little bit," Terri added, calming down.  "Invitation only, wasn't it?"  Before he could respond, she proceeded, "**Matsu**, before you answer that, what _are_ you doing in my apartment?"

                "Jonouchi asked me where you lived, so I showed him here, and I wanted to make sure you were all right."

                She blinked, then deadpanned, "Who are you and what have you done with Kaiba?"

                "You seem disturbed, even more so than usual."

                "Never mind, your insults are enough proof," she said, sweatdropping but not changing her tone from its previous monotone.  "So, the thing _is_ invitation only, right?"

                "Hai.  You should know; you _did,_ as you said, work on it."

                "That may be, but I never really got the specs on it; all I know is it's mostly Battle City rules, but with 6000 Life Points and no restrictions on Special Summons.  Are we (A/N:  "We" being KaibaCorp, since she works there now!  {snicker}) still doin' the card ante and Deck Master system?"  (A/N:  I don't know all the Deck Master abilities, so forgive me if I make some up!)

                "Hai; it's also single-elimination."

                "Oh, interesting.  I'll give you one thing, you can throw a tournament, if nothing else."  The last part was muttered under her breath.

                "I heard that, Allen."

                Putting a hand to her mouth in mock surprise, she said, "Dear me, can't have that, can we?"  Smirking, she continued, "You were meant to hear it."

                "You do realize I hold your job in my hands, don't you?"

                "True, but if you fired me, you wouldn't be able to humiliate me anymore, so my job's pretty much safe," she retorted, nonplussed.

                "Still, if I remember correctly,  you came to KaibaCorp as a last resort because you couldn't find work anywhere else, so that'd be sufficient compensation."

                "Hmph."

                "So when's this tournament?" Jou asked, once again trying to keep the peace.

                "A week from tomorrow.  The rest of the rules will be explained then."

                "All right, now that we've been sufficiently graced with your presence, will you get out my apartment?" Terri asked, once again in a completely flat tone.

                "Fine.  I trust you'll see fit to come in to work tomorrow?"

                "Kaiba, you baka, she just got stabbed in the leg!" Jou yelled.

                "I'll be in," Terri interjected, giving him an amused look.

                "What do you plan on doing, healing overnight?!"

                "I don't plan on taking _that_ long."  She limped over to an end table and started flipping through her deck.  "Here we go...Dian Keto the Cure Master!"  The healer appeared and threw a shimmering globe over her, healing the wound in her leg.  "Dōmo," she said as he bowed and vanished.  "So, what brings you to Nagano?"

                "I came to find you."

                She blinked, then shook her head and looked away.  "Gomen nasai."

                "Dōshite?"

                "Because you're wasting your time.  As long as Iris lives in Domino City, I'm not going back."

                "You sure?  Sybil really misses you, and since you told her not to follow her...."  He trailed off, having already made his point.

                She thought for a moment, then pulled Harpie's Brother out of her deck and summoned him.  "I want you to fly to Domino City and give a message to Sybil, understand?"  He nodded.  "Good.  I want you to tell her my request not to come after me no longer stands, as long as she doesn't try and convince me to come back."  He bowed and flew out the window.  "There, problem solved.  Any other reasons?"

                "Well, there's taking the easy way out," he said, sweatdropping.  "Besides, the rest of us miss you too, and we can't exactly take off school to visit."

                "What do you call what you're doing?" she returned with a raised eyebrow.

                "That's different!"

                "How so?"

                "'Cause I didn't come just to visit!"

                "Well, like I said, you're wasting your time.  I'm not going back to Domino City unless Iris leaves."

                Pausing, he shrugged and said, "Okay, how're apartment rates here?"

                "Why do you ask?"

                "'Cause, like you said, you're not leaving, so I figure I might as well stay too, since I'm not leaving without you."

                "N-**nani**?" she asked as the blood rushed to her face.

                "You heard me, I leave with you or not at all."

                She gave him a devilish smirk, thinking, _Gonna be stubborn, I see.  Well, two can play at that game...._  "Welcome to Nagano."

[KO:  Hark, I come bearing plot!  Ha, and you thought there weren't gonna be any duels....

Terri:  I know of exactly 2 stories of yours that _don't_ have duels--

KO:  And this isn't one of 'em!

Terri:  However, in your defense....{blinks}  Did I just say that?  {shakes head}  Anyway, in your defense, it did have a plot before you added the tournament.

KO:  Yeah, I just thought a tournament would make it more interesting.

Translations from Japanese

Nani mo - Nothing

Nē - [used for emphasis, i.e. "right?" or "huh?"]

Shimatta - Damn

Miru - Look

Damare - Shut up

Akuma Batsu - Demon Clan

Chikushō - Damn it

Kami - God

Tawagoto - B.S.

Matsu - Wait

Nani - What]


End file.
